Former names | Coker College for Women (1908–1969) Coker College (1969–2019) |
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Type | Private university |
Established | 1908 |
Founder | James Lide Coker |
Endowment | $29.8 million (2023) |
President | Natalie Harder [1] |
Provost | Susan Daniels Henderson |
Academic staff | 49 full-time 62 adjunct |
Students | 1,160 (Fall 2022) |
Location | , U.S. 34°22′36.4″N80°04′10″W / 34.376778°N 80.06944°W |
Colors | Navy Blue, Light Blue, & Gold [2] |
Nickname | Cobras |
Sporting affiliations | NCAA Division II – South Atlantic |
Website | www |
Coker University is a private university in Hartsville, South Carolina. It was founded in 1908 and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. [3] Coker's sports teams, nicknamed the Cobras, compete in NCAA Division II.
Coker University began in 1894 as Welsh Neck High School, founded by a local businessman and American Civil War veteran, Major James Lide Coker (1837–1918). In 1908, when South Carolina created a statewide public school system, Coker led the effort to convert the school to Coker College for Women. Davidson Hall and Memorial Hall are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. [4]
Coker was once affiliated with the South Carolina Baptist Convention, but has been non-denominational since 1944. It officially became co-educational in 1969, although men had attended since World War II's end.[ citation needed ]
The South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics was located on the Coker campus from 1988 until moving to its campus in 2003. [5] [6]
Effective July 1, 2019, Coker College adopted the name Coker University. [7]
Coker refers to the academic program for the four-year undergraduate degree as the Trans4mations Program, with the first year being foundational, the second year requiring service and attendance at cultural events, the third year requiring at least two weeks of study off-campus, and the final year called a "capstone". [8] The Liberal Arts Studies Program (LASP) is divided into Core Skills, Knowledge of the Arts, Knowledge of the Behavioral Sciences, Knowledge of the Humanities, Knowledge of the Natural Sciences, Knowledge of the United States, and Knowledge of the Wider World. [9]
Coker offers 29 majors and 23 minors of study. The college also offers individual majors and double majors, self-designated degree programs, specializations, and pre-professional programs.[ citation needed ]
The 15-acre (6.1 ha) main campus contains mostly Georgian-style brick buildings, some of which (such as Davidson Hall, home to the college's round table classrooms) are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Alumni House (Drengaelen), The President's House, The Dean's and President's Offices (David and May Coker House), and The Registrar's Offices (Lawton-Wilson House) are all located in old mansions along the northern edge of campus.
Hartsville and Coker University owe much to the generosity of the Coker family, founders of Sonoco and Coker's Pedigreed Seed Company. The Coker family's patronage of the college has led to the vast majority of buildings on campus having Coker somewhere in the name. Students often joke to freshmen or visitors that they'll meet them "in the Coker" building as a way to gently initiate newcomers to campus.[ citation needed ]
On-campus residence halls include Memorial (1914), Belk (1916), Coker (1916), Grannis (1969), and JLC (2009).[ citation needed ] Coker University’s Village at Byerly Place, consisting of George and Sullivan Halls opened in 2013. [10] In 2011, Coker opened the Coker Downtown Lofts and in 2012 the Downtown Flats, both located in downtown Hartsville. [11] [12]
In January 2008, the Charles W. and Joan S. Coker Library-Information Technology Center opened. The library was built using donations from a capital campaign. [13] [14] The former James Lide Coker Memorial Library is now a residence hall. [15]
Coker Cobras | |
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University | Coker University |
Conference | South Atlantic (primary) Conference Carolinas (acrobatics & tumbling) |
NCAA | Division II |
Athletic director | Lynn Griffin |
Location | Hartsville, South Carolina |
Varsity teams | 21 (9 men's, 11 women's, 1 co-ed) |
Basketball arena | DeLoach Center |
Baseball stadium | Tom J. New Baseball Field |
Softball stadium | Saleeby-Stokes Softball Field |
Soccer field | Coker Athletic Field |
Lacrosse stadium | Coker Athletic Field |
Tennis venue | Coker Tennis Courts |
Mascot | Striker the Cobra |
Nickname | Cobras |
Colors | Navy and gold [16] |
Website | www |
Adjacent to the main campus is a 22-acre athletics complex with baseball, softball, soccer, and tennis facilities. Near the athletics complex is the DeLoach Center, which contains a 1,908-seat gymnasium, an auxiliary gym, interactive classrooms, a student-athlete-only weight room, a fitness center, athletic offices, and more.[ citation needed ]
Coker has 21 varsity athletics programs, which primarily compete in The South Atlantic Conference. [17] Sponsored programs include baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, women's field hockey, men's and women's golf, men's and women's lacrosse, men's and women's soccer, softball, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's track and field (indoor and outdoor) women's volleyball, and men's wrestling. The Cobras also host a spirit squad.
In the 2013 season, the Coker baseball team won the Conference Carolinas Tournament title, earned the team's first-ever postseason bid, won the NCAA Southeast Regional, and advanced to the NCAA DII Baseball National Championship. They finished the year with a record of 38–16. [18]
Columbia is the capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-most populous city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. It is the center of the Columbia, SC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated population of 858,302 in 2023, and is the 70th-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States. The name Columbia is a poetic term used for the United States, derived from the name of Christopher Columbus, who explored for the Spanish Crown. Columbia is often abbreviated as Cola, leading to its nickname as "Soda City".
Darlington County is a county in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 62,905. Its county seat is Darlington. Hartsville is the largest community in the county. Darlington County is home to the Darlington Raceway, which hosts the annual NASCAR Southern 500. Darlington County is also home to Coker College in Hartsville. Darlington County was named by an act in March 1785.
Hartsville is the largest city in Darlington County, South Carolina, United States. It was chartered on December 11, 1891. The population was 7,764 at the 2010 census. Hartsville was chosen as an All-America City in 1996 and again in 2016. Hartsville has also been a National Arbor Day Foundation Tree City since 1986.
Suffolk County Community College (SCCC) is a public community college in Selden, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system and is funded in part by Suffolk County, New York. Suffolk County Community College was founded in 1959 and has three campuses: Selden, Brentwood and Riverhead. It also has two satellite centers in Sayville and downtown Riverhead.
The University of South Carolina is a public research university in Columbia, South Carolina. It is the flagship of the University of South Carolina System and the largest university in the state by enrollment. Its main campus is on over 359 acres (145 ha) in downtown Columbia, close to the South Carolina State House. The university is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities with Highest Research Activity". It houses the largest collection of Robert Burns and Scottish literature materials outside Scotland and the world's largest Ernest Hemingway collection.
The Citadel Military College of South Carolina is a public senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. Established in 1842, it is the third oldest of the six senior military colleges in the United States. The Citadel was initially established as two schools to educate young men from around the state, while simultaneously protecting the South Carolina State Arsenals in both Columbia and Charleston.
Winthrop University is a public university in Rock Hill, South Carolina. It was founded in 1886 by David Bancroft Johnson, who served as the superintendent of Columbia, South Carolina, schools. He received a grant from Robert Charles Winthrop, a philanthropist from Boston, Massachusetts and chair of the Peabody Education Board in Massachusetts, to establish the school.
Benedictine University is a private Catholic university in Lisle, Illinois. It was founded in 1887 as St. Procopius College by the Benedictine monks of St. Procopius Abbey in the Pilsen community on the West Side of Chicago. The institution has retained a close relationship with the Benedictine Order, which bears the name of St. Benedict, the acknowledged father of western monasticism.
Belmont Abbey College is a private, Catholic liberal arts college in Belmont, North Carolina. It was founded in 1876 by the Benedictine monks of Belmont Abbey. The college is affiliated with the Catholic Church and the Order of Saint Benedict. Belmont Abbey is the only college in North Carolina affiliated with the Catholic Church.
Huntington University is a private Christian university in Huntington, Indiana. It is affiliated with the Church of the United Brethren in Christ and a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU).
Charles Westfield Coker is the former president and CEO of Sonoco Products Company of Hartsville, South Carolina, United States. He also served as a director of Bank of America, Sara Lee Corporation, HanesBrands Inc., Springs Industries, and Carolina Power & Light Company, and as chairman of the board of Hollings Cancer Center at the Medical University of South Carolina. Along with being initiated into the South Carolina Business Hall of Fame, Coker has been granted South Carolina's highest philanthropic honor, the Order of the Palmetto.
Hartsville High School is a public secondary school serving grades 9–12 located in Hartsville, South Carolina. 1,226 students attended Hartsville High for the 2017–2018 school year. It was founded in 1961.
The Pee Dee Area Council was a Boy Scouts organization located in northeastern South Carolina. The Indian Waters Council headquartered in Columbia, SC absorbed the council on August 1, 2022. The combined council, Indian Waters Council #553 continues to operate Camp Coker, and maintain an office in Florence, SC.
Spartanburg Methodist College (SMC) is a private Methodist college in Saxon, South Carolina. The college is affiliated with the United Methodist Church and has approximately 1,000 students.
The South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics is a public, boarding high school for students in grades 11 and 12, located in Hartsville, South Carolina. The school concentrates on science and mathematics, but offers the full spectrum of the humanities as well.
Major James Lide Coker was a businessman, merchant, industrialist, Christian philanthropist, and Civil War veteran, and the founder of Sonoco Products Company and Coker College. He was called "The Major" after his service in the Confederate Army.
Charles C. Wilson was an American architect in practice in Columbia, South Carolina, from 1896 until his death in 1933.
Davidson Hall, Coker University, also known as the Administration Building, is a historic educational building located on the campus of Coker University at Hartsville, Darlington County, South Carolina. It was built in 1909–1910, and is a two-story, 15-bay, rectangular brick building with Neo-Classical details. It has a hip roof and a projecting semicircular auditorium on the rear elevation. The front façade features a projecting, two-story, pedimented portico, supported by six stuccoed Ionic order columns. It was built with funds donated by the college's founder, Major James Lide Coker, and was the first building constructed for Coker University.
Memorial Hall, also known as the General Service Building, is a historic dormitory building located on the campus of Coker University at Hartsville, Darlington County, South Carolina. It was built in two phases in 1913 and 1916. Memorial Hall is a three-story, five-bay, masonry building with Neo-Classical details. The front façade features a three-bay projecting full-height portico supported by four colossal Corinthian order columns. In 1916, the General Service Building was added and consists of three distinct parts: a central projecting block and two dormitory wings. It was built with funds donated by the college's founder, Major James Lide Coker.